Some dust for my puppy please.

[Resonance.Of.Life]

My 18 week old English Bull Terrier puppy suddenly got extremely watery diarrhea last night and despite that he has had 4 sets of DHPPC... I''m worried he might have parvo. Please can I have some dust and prayers for my pup as I''m taking him to the vet tonight?

 

[Bia]

I hope your puppy is okay

Lots and lots of ****dust**** your way. Let us know how the visit to the vet goes...

 

[MonkeyPie]

Oh, TONS of dust for your baby...parvo sucks. I think it''s treatable though, isn''t it? I hope he gets better!

 

[Lauren8211]

****DUST**** so your puppy gets better soon!

 

[Resonance.Of.Life]

Treatable yes, however it requires hospitalization which can be anywhere from $1,000-3,500. I can manage around $1500 but anything more than that... I''m afraid I''d have to put him to sleep.

*sigh* and I might just be paranoid but really his diarrhea was so bad he couldn''t hold it last night in his crate.

Here''s my baby...

 

[AmberGretchen]

I''m very sorry to hear about your poor puppy. I''ve seen it in person, many times, and parvo is a devastating illness for puppies and their owners. I will send all possible good thoughts your way that your puppy heals up completely.

I know this may not be what you want to hear right now, and I hope you will take it as it is meant, which is to help you and possibly others who may see this avoid the heartbreaking situation you are in now. While there is no 100% way to prevent parvo, there are many things puppy owners can do to help prevent your dog from getting it and also to prevent him/her from spreading it to other puppies.

The top things to prevent parvovirus infection in canines are prevention by vaccination and reduction of exposure to the virus. This means that as soon as a puppy is eligible, they should receive the sequence of canine parvovirus vaccinations. Also, it is incredibly important to protect your puppy''s delicate immune system by reducing exposure as much as possible. Feces from infected animals can contain CPV, so its best to walk the puppy only on surfaces that you can see what''s there when you are out in public (i.e. hard surfaces, no grass) until they are 6 months old and/or have completed their vaccination series.

Also important to keep in mind is that CPV can live for a VERY long time on surfaces where other infected dogs/puppies have been - I''ve seen up to a year in the scientific literature. EXTREMELY thorough cleaning with the right chemicals is necessary to completely get rid of it. It is almost impossible to do this kind of cleaning in a home environment with many absorbent materials such as carpet, so if a home has a confirmed case of parvo it really isn''t safe to bring another young puppy into that environment for at least 12 months.

Finally, remember that the source of the puppy may dictate its exposure during its early life before it comes to you. Specifically, inexperienced breeders and especially pet stores (who get their puppies, 99.99% of the time no matter what they tell you, from puppy mills) are FAR more likely to sell puppies with a pre-existing CPV infection or exposure vs. reputable breeders or reputable shelters or rescue groups.

So please, to avoid a heartbreaking situation like this one, get your puppy from a reputable breeder, rescue, or shelter, have it vaccinated ASAP and complete the vaccination sequence, and carefully control the things your puppy is exposed to during its first 6 months of life - no grass in public spaces, and no crowded areas with lots of other dogs that could be carriers.

As I said, TONS of dust headed out to your poor infected puppy - I really really hope this Parvo story has a happy ending.

 

[bee*]

Sending dust for your puppy! I hope that he''ll be ok and that it''s not parvo.

 

[Resonance.Of.Life]

Amber,

I did get my pup from a reputable breeder (gave me all the records and even gave me copies of the parent''s echocardiogram results and BUN/Creatnine tests) and I''ve had him for 5 weeks now. the DHPPC shots were given at 6, 9, 12, and 15 weeks. And bordetella given at 12 and 15 weeks. While I know NO vaccine is 100% It really perturbs me that giving him 4 sets of DHPPC instead of just the standard 3 he could still have possibly gotten it.

We tried to do the adoption route first, but because we had an existing cat and min pin, they did not recommend us adopting because they often have issues with other animals (prey drive). Nitro (as the breeder named him, fits him to a T) is so well mannered and well-socialized he got along with my pets. >_< I really did my due diligence in researching a reputable breeder and making sure he was isolated during before all his vaccinations were given. I''d never buy from a petstore nor from a puppy mill! Especially not with this breed who requires BAER testing (as puppies) and kidney function and heart tests prior to breeding the parents.

 

[lulu]

What did the vet say? Your puppy is adorable.

 

[Resonance.Of.Life]

$250 later.. and a stool float, giardia snap test later.... we find out no parasites.. and no parvo (parvo snap test)...just unexplainable "puppy diarrhea" .. thanks guys for all the dust!

 

[AmberGretchen]

Date: 5/19/2009 6:28:58 PM
Author: Resonance.Of.Life
Amber,

I did get my pup from a reputable breeder (gave me all the records and even gave me copies of the parent''s echocardiogram results and BUN/Creatnine tests) and I''ve had him for 5 weeks now. the DHPPC shots were given at 6, 9, 12, and 15 weeks. And bordetella given at 12 and 15 weeks. While I know NO vaccine is 100% It really perturbs me that giving him 4 sets of DHPPC instead of just the standard 3 he could still have possibly gotten it.


We tried to do the adoption route first, but because we had an existing cat and min pin, they did not recommend us adopting because they often have issues with other animals (prey drive). Nitro (as the breeder named him, fits him to a T) is so well mannered and well-socialized he got along with my pets. >_< I really did my due diligence in researching a reputable breeder and making sure he was isolated during before all his vaccinations were given. I''d never buy from a petstore nor from a puppy mill! Especially not with this breed who requires BAER testing (as puppies) and kidney function and heart tests prior to breeding the parents.

Resonance,

I didn''t mean to imply that you hadn''t gotten your pup from a reputable breeder, and I''m very sorry if my post came across that way. The PSers around here will tell you I''m very passionate about pet health and safety, and my post was intended to be informative to you (who clearly already knew everything I said) and anyone else who might come across this thread but might not be as familiar with the information.

It certainly sounds like you did your due diligence and then some when getting your pup, and good for you!!

So many people don''t and I''ve seen so many horrible outcomes when that is the case. As you said, nothing is 100% protection against parvo in puppies, unfortunately, and sometimes its just impossible to know where the pup might have picked it up.

Your pup is gorgeous and I will be sending the best of all possible thoughts to you and to him at this difficult time - I pray that it is not parvo, and that if it is, it is a mild case and he is back to 100% health ASAP. All fingers and paws (my three kitties'' paws) crossed in my house - we''ll be pulling for you!

 

[icekid]

Sick pets break my heart!! Dust to your little puppy, Resonance!

 

[Resonance.Of.Life]

Amber,

Oops maybe my post came off strongly. But I have the same concerns as you in general about people who get into situations like that. I was Pre-Vet at Cal Poly Pomona (before the severe allergy problems) so I think I had a little head-start when it came to pickng a puppy out.

Please, do continue to educate!

But he just has what they call "puppy diarrhea" just sometimes he will come and go.. but I think I was being a bit paranoid because of previous experience at the clinics and work with parvo and severe liquid diarrhea. He''s on albon now so that should help him and IVD food.

 

[CJ2008]

Resonance, I''m SO glad your adorable puppy is OK.

And thank you AND Amber for being so caring and passionate about animals!

 

[MonkeyPie]

Date: 5/19/2009 10:10:49 PM
Author: Resonance.Of.Life
$250 later.. and a stool float, giardia snap test later.... we find out no parasites.. and no parvo (parvo snap test)...just unexplainable ''puppy diarrhea'' .. thanks guys for all the dust!

Oh I''m SO glad it didn''t turn out to be parvo! Poor baby, something he ate probably just didn''t agree with him. I hope he''s better now!

 

[AmberGretchen]

RoL - I''m so glad that its not parvo!! That is wonderful news

That''s cool that you were pre-vet - I thought about it for a while (also considered pre-med), but I''m allergic also - I ended up going for a PhD in Immunology and doing HIV research (will be finished in just under 2 months!).

I''m just so thrilled that your little guy doesn''t have anything serious

 

[Resonance.Of.Life]

hehe I''m doing the RN to CRNA route didn''t feel like it was worth it to do the MD route in my situation. I wanted to have more patient interaction. Congrats btw on the PhD soon to be Dr. Amber